Fired or punished for speaking up in Boulder?
Losing your job, hours or standing after you reported misconduct, took protected leave or exercised a workplace right may be unlawful.
If your workplace rights were violated, you may be able to pursue compensation for lost pay or emotional harm, and hold your employer accountable.
Not sure whether it was "serious enough"? You can request a review even if you never reported it to HR or are still employed.
What wrongful termination can look like, and what the law calls it.
Not every unfair firing is unlawful. What matters is the real reason behind the decision, and whether that reason is one the law prohibits.
My reviews were fine for years. Then I raised a concern, and suddenly I was 'not a fit.'
The law calls it → potentially wrongful termination
- I was let go shortly after reporting a problem at work. The law calls it → possible retaliatory termination
- They didn't fire me outright, they made the job impossible until I quit. The law calls it → possible constructive discharge
- The stated reason for my firing doesn't match what actually happened. The law calls it → possible pretext for an unlawful termination
- After I raised a data-integrity concern at a Boulder lab, only my line in the budget disappeared. The law calls it → possible retaliation or retaliatory termination
These cover fired for an unlawful reason, fired after reporting misconduct, fired in breach of an agreement, pushed out instead of formally fired, retaliation for asserting workplace rights, in any industry. If something here is familiar, you don't have to be sure before you ask.
Illustrative situations, not client accounts.
Boulder's research companies, startups, and university-adjacent private employers are covered by Colorado's anti-retaliation rules and its public-policy discharge tort. A CADA retaliation charge is generally due to the Colorado Civil Rights Division within 300 days, the EEOC window is also 300 days, and Colorado tort claims generally carry a two-year clock. Colorado matters at this firm are led by an attorney admitted in Colorado.
What could taking action help you pursue?
Depending on the facts, legal action may help recover financial losses, address emotional harm, restore employment opportunities, or require workplace changes. Available remedies depend on the facts and applicable law; no outcome is guaranteed.
Recover what you lost
Lost pay, benefits, hours, and employment opportunities tied to the unlawful conduct.
Address the harm
Compensation for emotional distress may be available where the law provides for it.
Restore an opportunity
Some cases may involve reinstatement, promotion, corrected records, or another job-related remedy.
Create accountability
A resolution may include policy changes, training, or other corrective workplace action.
You do not need a perfect record, or even to know whether what happened was illegal, before asking what your options are.
Common concerns we hear from employees
I never reported it to HR.
You may still have legal options. Not reporting immediately does not automatically end your rights, although the specific facts can affect a claim.
I don't have screenshots or witnesses.
You do not need a complete evidence file before contacting us. We can help identify texts, emails, schedules, witnesses, and other evidence that may matter.
I still work there.
You can ask questions while still employed. Retaliating against a worker for opposing unlawful conduct or asserting protected rights may itself be unlawful.
My employer says I was fired for performance. Does that end the issue?
No. The stated reason is evidence, not the final answer. Timing, earlier reviews, shifting explanations, and how coworkers were treated can all show the real reason was retaliation.
Brian Denlinger
Shareholder · Admitted in Colorado
Brian Denlinger is licensed in Colorado and Washington. He represents employees in discrimination, harassment, retaliation, and wage-and-hour matters.
Read Brian's full bio →Selected retaliation, discrimination, and harassment results.
$370K
Individual plaintiff · judgment includes fees and costs · Title VII retaliation judgment
Final
$23.5M
Financial-services workforce · 150 women · Sexual harassment settlement
Final · Craig Ackermann served as second chair (prior-firm experience)
$15M+
Apparel industry · individual plaintiff · Gender pay and promotion discrimination
Jury verdict, subject to post-trial proceedings, statutory limits, and appeal. Not a settlement or a collected recovery.
$1.3M
Construction workforce · 19 Black workers · Racial harassment
Final
Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Every case is different; the value and outcome of your matter will depend on its specific facts.
What happens after you reach out?
You don't need documents, a lawyer-ready story, or even certainty that what happened was illegal.
- 01
Talk with us
A short initial conversation about what happened and when.
- 02
We assess the record
We identify possible claims, deadlines and evidence that may matter.
- 03
If we take the case
We handle the filing strategy, negotiations and litigation.
Deadlines can depend on where and how you file
Colorado and federal claims may follow different filing routes. These are general time limits, not sequential steps.
Generally, to file a retaliation charge with the Colorado Civil Rights Division.
CCRD, Complaint Process ↗Often, to file a federal retaliation charge with the EEOC when state or local law also covers the claim.
EEOC, How to File a Charge ↗Commonly, for Colorado tort claims.
Other claims and exceptions may have different or shorter deadlines. Contact counsel promptly so the applicable dates can be reviewed.
CADA retaliation and Colorado wrongful discharge in violation of public policy
C.R.S. § 24-34-402(1)(e); Colorado public-policy tort
Primary source, C.R.S. § 24-34-402(1)(e); Colorado public-policy tort ↗Share what happened in about two minutes. The firm will review your submission and contact you about possible options and next steps. There is no cost or obligation to request a review.
Deadlines and filing issues for workers in Boulder.
- Grant cycles end and startups pivot, which supplies Boulder employers with ready-made neutral explanations; timing against your protected activity is the test.
- The CCRD and EEOC windows run concurrently, but filing with one does not automatically dual-file with the other in every case; confirm it.
- Research-integrity complaints can implicate federal whistleblower schemes with their own shorter administrative windows.
- Academic-adjacent private employers are still private employers; university grievance procedures do not toll civil deadlines.
- The two-year tort clock is generous only compared to the charge windows; evidence in Boulder's small employer community goes stale much faster.
Where do you file a wrongful termination claim in Boulder?
Colorado Civil Rights Division
Denver (statewide)1560 Broadway, Suite 825
Denver, CO 80202
(303) 894-2997
The CCRD is part of the Department of Regulatory Agencies in Denver. An intake packet can be started online; the division serves the whole state from Denver.
File online →EEOC Denver Field Office
The Denver Field Office covers all of Colorado including Boulder County; there is no EEOC office in Boulder. Most workers file online.
950 17th Street, Suite 300Denver, CO 80202
1-800-669-4000 EEOC Public Portal →
Boulder County District Court (20th Judicial District)
Boulder County Combined Court1777 6th Street
Boulder, CO 80302
The Colorado public-policy tort proceeds directly in court without a CCRD charge. A CADA retaliation claim runs through the CCRD/EEOC route instead, the two paths have different deadlines.
The filing path, step by step
- 1Reduce the sequence to dates on paper: the report or refusal, who learned of it, and the termination or demotion that followed.
- 2File the CADA retaliation charge with the Colorado Civil Rights Division within 300 days; intake is online and serves Boulder without a Denver trip.
- 3The parallel federal charge goes through the EEOC Public Portal, also within 300 days.
- 4Court claims, including wrongful discharge in violation of public policy, are filed in Boulder County District Court or the District of Colorado, generally within two years.
- 5Review grant-funded and startup employment terms, especially IP and arbitration clauses, before selecting routes; they shape procedure, not deadlines.
Wrongful-termination information in other Colorado cities
- Colorado SpringsWrongful-termination information
- DenverWrongful-termination information
- Fort CollinsWrongful-termination information
Asked by Boulder workers.
I questioned data practices at a Boulder research company and my position was defunded. Is that retaliation?
Defunding aimed at a person rather than a program can be retaliation. Budget records and which roles survived are the evidence that separates the two.
What are Colorado's actual deadlines?
Generally 300 days for the CCRD charge, 300 days for the EEOC, and two years for public-policy discharge and other tort claims in court.
Does Colorado recognize firing-for-refusal claims?
Yes. Colorado's wrongful-discharge-in-violation-of-public-policy tort covers terminations for refusing to perform unlawful acts and similar protected conduct.
Who at the firm handles Boulder matters, and where are cases filed?
Colorado matters are led by Brian Denlinger, admitted in Colorado. State claims are filed in Boulder County District Court; federal claims in the District of Colorado.